Resolved WY - Polecat Bench, mystery grave, cross w/MORGAN '88' & '03', two rings, Oct'19 - Animal remains

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Gardener1850 said:
I'm not saying you are wrong, but why would someone put a necklace with two different sized rings on the grave marker for their deceased pet or horse?
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I can think of possible scenarios but none of them directly correlate. Just things that might have happened, like somebody found the necklace and draped it on the cross so they wouldn’t lose it again in the dirt.
 
Hi @Gardener1850

Very interesting. Removing the emotion of what this could be, this is a case I would like to follow. Are human remains there or not?

First, it appears Wyoming allows home burials on private property. I’m sure there are restrictions around this (you simply can’t bury grandma in the backyard just like that). Perhaps this is why LE is handling this with care and not just excavating the area. At the same time, they want to know what’s going on here. The owner of the property wants to know. Is this a possible 15 year old teen? Is this a simple memorial site? So many questions.

According to the article, dogs did alert to the possibility of human remains. This is a big deal.

Let’s assume these are well trained dogs, the dogs are a genetic dream, the handler and dog is a team, a true partnership. That handler knows their dogs body language, knows that dog inside and out. That the handler knowing what they were doing at that site, did not inadvertently influence the dog that something might be there. IMO, absolutely the dog(s) might be spot on. Human remains are there.

Of course they can smell a rotting animal or animal bones but that does not matter, it’s something to discard. It’s not the focus. This is not amateur hour for a well trained, squared away HRD dog.

Perhaps had that dog leave the area that alerted, they brought in another HRD dog, it’s a natural search. Second dog indicates.

Dogs are not always correct. False positives or they don’t alert when remains were in the area. We’ve all read a story where this was the case.

I tend to trust the dogs.

I’m very interested in what will happen in this case. This is all my opinion.
 
K9Enzo said:
Hi @Gardener1850

Very interesting. Removing the emotion of what this could be, this is a case I would like to follow. Are human remains there or not?

First, it appears Wyoming allows home burials on private property. I’m sure there are restrictions around this (you simply can’t bury grandma in the backyard just like that). Perhaps this is why LE is handling this with care and not just excavating the area. At the same time, they want to know what’s going on here. The owner of the property wants to know. Is this a possible 15 year old teen? Is this a simple memorial site? So many questions.

According to the article, dogs did alert to the possibility of human remains. This is a big deal.

Let’s assume these are well trained dogs, the dogs are a genetic dream, the handler and dog is a team, a true partnership. That handler knows their dogs body language, knows that dog inside and out. That the handler knowing what they were doing at that site, did not inadvertently influence the dog that something might be there. IMO, absolutely the dog(s) might be spot on. Human remains are there.

Of course they can smell a rotting animal or animal bones but that does not matter, it’s something to discard. It’s not the focus. This is not amateur hour for a well trained, squared away HRD dog.

Perhaps had that dog leave the area that alerted, they brought in another HRD dog, it’s a natural search. Second dog indicates.

Dogs are not always correct. False positives or they don’t alert when remains were in the area. We’ve all read a story where this was the case.

I tend to trust the dogs.

I’m very interested in what will happen in this case. This is all my opinion.
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Thank you for your detailed feedback! While I don't know as much about the subject as you, I tend to trust the dogs too. I know they are not infallible and will sometimes miss remains when the conditions are not optimal or the training not up to par. But I've yet to see a case where they alerted and the remains found were animal instead of human. I agree that this is an interesting case to follow and I hope the mystery will be solved.

MOO
 
Gardener1850 said:
Thank you for your detailed feedback! While I don't know as much about the subject as you, I tend to trust the dogs too. I know they are not infallible and will sometimes miss remains when the conditions are not optimal or the training not up to par. But I've yet to see a case where they alerted and the remains found were animal instead of human. I agree that this is an interesting case to follow and I hope the mystery will be solved.

MOO
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Disclaimer: I come from a small slice of the working dog world. Because of that, I have crossed paths with exceptional people, have friends and family with great knowledge & experience. On WS, I’m a member that enjoys open discussion and giving my opinion :)
 
Blurgle said:
Are we sure it's 1988 and 2003, and not 1888 and 1903?

I mean, this is the kind of thing you see in the bush.
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Thought that I had, let’s say it is 1888 and 1903. Suppose some locals knew about the grave and have maintained it through the years, eventually the cross wore/broke down and it was replaced, with something similar and the process repeated. Eventually someone decided to put up a more durable metal one. The cutting looks crude to me, like something I would do with an arc welder (okay maybe not the first time) I’ve seen metal cutting that is amazing from the guy down the road who just plays around with it. The rings would need some inspection to see what kind of metal they are to help date them. Now police want to know who the grave belongs to but no one is quite sure, it’s just always been there and they have just looked after it.

Edited to add:IMOO, JMO, etc..
 
I'm not discounting that it could be a pet at this point although the grave doesn't really look like an animal's grave. Some people consider their pets their children and I could see a couple leaving rings or something on a pet's grave that they had loved dearly. It doesn't seem like this grave was hidden at all which makes me think whomever did it didn't think what they did was wrong.

My other thought is maybe a couple had a child with disabilities that passed away perhaps of natural causes that they wanted to keep near them so buried the child on their property. That or a little more sinister, child passed away but parents didn't report it so they could keep collecting disability benefits for the child/teenager.
 
A suggestion would be to contact the local funeral parlor. They keep cemetery books with information about burials in local cemeteries and family plots. It helps them avoid burying people in a spot that already contains an old grave. Even when a funeral parlor changes hands, the books go along with the sale.

It's also a good reason to let the local funeral home know or handle the burial if you're burying a family member on your private land. Keeping records is courteous and thoughtful way to assist future generations while respecting the deceased.
 
I'm guessing a husband and wife. One passing in 88 the other in 03. law may require that deaths be reported etc before one can be buried on private land but that doesn't mean it's done. I suspect a family member (son, daughter, nephew etc) followed through with the couples final wishes and buried the last remaining spouse where the first had been buried 15 years earlier. A simple marker was erected. The remaining spouse likely held on the the first's wedding ring after they passed in 88 and the two rings were rejoined in 03 when the remaining one passed. They would have the last name Morgan. I don't see anything suspicious or sinister. I see simplicity, love, respect - following loved ones last wishes, whether done legally or not.
 
I've seen cadaver dogs alert on animal remains before in a couple of documentaries. One time it was a dead bird, another time it was a dead dog. I believe cadaver dogs are mostly right, but not always.

So the grave was found in early August, but LE haven't actually dug it up? I get that they want to check with the public first, maybe there's a perfectly reasonable explanation and they don't want to desecrate the resting place of a loved one, but it's a bit strange to me that they haven't excavated it. Maybe if this appeal has no leads, they will. I hope they don't just leave it alone if they find nothing out from the public. It could be something sinister.
 
In reading all the posts on Park County Sheriffs FB page it sounds as though this grave has not been a secret or only recently found. It was posted that it had been shared about a year ago on a Wyoming site. Also reported that there were people that posted it's story but no one was able to now locate.
 
Betty P said:
A suggestion would be to contact the local funeral parlor. They keep cemetery books with information about burials in local cemeteries and family plots. It helps them avoid burying people in a spot that already contains an old grave. Even when a funeral parlor changes hands, the books go along with the sale.

It's also a good reason to let the local funeral home know or handle the burial if you're burying a family member on your private land. Keeping records is courteous and thoughtful way to assist future generations while respecting the deceased.
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In Kentucky, death certificates were not required to be issued until around 1913. Prior to that, people could just bury Grandma on their own land with no paperwork of any type required. If the Wyoming graves ARE 1888 and 1903, there may have been no requirements at all back then.
 
I suspect this grave was recently redecorated - paint, jewelry, etc - either as an artistic spruce-up of an old pioneer grave someone found or as a deliberately aged tribute to a recent burial. But nobody would do this unless the burial was either so old that nobody remembered the deceased or licit in some way, and the easiest way it could be licit is if it were an animal grave. There's no law I know against burying Morgan the pony in the back 40.

Look at the letters and numbers - specifically, look at their font: that's pure turn-of-the-century Beaux Arts.
 
POWELL (WNE) — A mysterious grave reported on Polecat Bench this summer contains “the remains of a beloved family pet” and not a human body, the Park County Sheriff’s Office announced last week.
[...]
In a Thursday Facebook post announcing the close of the case, the sheriff’s office indicated that someone familiar with the creation of the site came forward to explain that a pet was buried at the site. The post said that investigators have since “verified that the grave does not contain human remains.”

Mysterious Park County grave contains remains of pet
 
Romulus said:
News on this case?
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They said they verified it was not human remains. I guess they did dig.
Mystery Grave Site Investigation Completed
The investigation into the apparent grave site discovered back in September of this year has been completed and it has been determined and verified that the grave does not contain human remains but rather the remains of a beloved family pet. As to the significance of the cross, those responsible for the grave have asked to remain anonymous and that their privacy be respected.
We thank all those who provided information regarding this site, especially those that assisted us in bringing this investigation to a close.
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bbm
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